Nwaiwu says defenders must be ready for Salah at Trabzonspor

Chibuike Nwaiwu says defenders facing Mohamed Salah must be 100% prepared and fully focused. Salah, 34, scored 257 goals during his nine years at Liverpool before leaving the club this summer as a free agent.

The Nigerian centre-back, who is Salah’s Trabzonspor teammate, believes even a momentary lapse in concentration can give the Egyptian forward the opportunity to decide a match. He described Salah as a high-quality attacker with the technical ability to break down a defence when presented with an opening.

Nwaiwu also welcomed the prospect of measuring himself against one of the game’s elite forwards. His assessment places emphasis on the concentration required from defenders, rather than on trying to remove Salah from the contest through a single challenge or tactical adjustment.

Salah began his Turkish Super Lig career with two goals against Istanbul Basaksehir and came close to completing a hat-trick in that victory. That performance followed his introduction as a substitute against Kasimpasa the previous weekend and a starting appearance in Trabzonspor’s Europa League play-off first-leg defeat by Ferencvaros.

The Basaksehir match was recorded as Salah’s first Turkish Super Lig appearance, while the Ferencvaros fixture came in his third match for the club. His early involvement has therefore included domestic league goals, a European start and a substitute outing.

Salah had initially been expected to move to Saudi Arabia before joining Trabzonspor on a two-year contract. The agreement carries reported wages of £280,000 per week, adding to the attention around his arrival in Turkey and the challenge now facing defenders such as Nwaiwu.